Editorial

Quick fixes with no downtime before the Oscars

February 28, 2011

Quick fixes with no downtime before the Oscars

Like sugar plum fairies, images of the 2011 Oscars persist long after the event. The dresses alone are enough to delight the senses, but their splendor was almost second to the stars’ creamy unlined skin: Amy Adams against sparkling midnight blue; Scarlett Johannsen, radiant atop intense beet red; Gwyneth Paltrow, a dazzling light in shimmery metallic.

Beauty guru, Grace Gold, wondered how the stars attain such perfection. Gold interviewed a prominent 5th Avenue plastic surgeon regularly hired to get the A-list names ready for the runway. She shared these tips with stylist.com.

Ideally, stars should come in a few weeks ahead of time to address beauty concerns but, with such busy schedules, many stars wait until the last minute. The goal is quick fixes with no downtime to tighten skin and give it a glow.

First step is to be able to fit into a skin-tight body- baring gown. Some celebs use the Zerona laser, which claims that light energy will shrink fat cells and shave off inches. Basically, you sit in front of a light for 45 minutes every other day for six sessions. This costs $500 to $700 per visit and six treatments within two weeks will give you the biggest bang for your buck. Expected results are a loss of 3.5 to five inches.

Strapless and low cut gowns give the eye nowhere to go but the jowls, the back of the arms and décolleté. The article states that these vulnerable areas can be treated with Thermage, which uses radio frequency waves to stimulate tissue tightening. Ulthera, similar to Thermage, provides instant results with no downtime. However, like Zerona, many experts believe this is a relatively new and unproven procedure.

High definition viewing bares the under eye, a problem area for most people, which is also treated with lasers. The heat is said to stimulate natural collagen in your skin. Laser treatments can range from $2,000 to $6,000 per treatment.

When you’re posing for an Oscar arrival photo, there’s nothing like a brown spot on the face, cleavage or back of the hand to make you feel self conscious. A variety of noninvasive treatments like microdermabrasion and nonablative lasers can be combined to lighten spots in as little as a week before the big day. But to entirely limit these spots, you need multiple treatments, including deep chemical peels (with downtime). Nonablative skin rejuvenation costs between $800 and $1,200 per treatment.

The red carpet beauty mainstay has been fillers and Botox, but if you opt for these, make sure to leave at least a week to spare for healing because it’s hard to predict who will bruise. FillersJuvederm and Restylane are most often shot into the lips or into aging marionette lines. Radiesse, a firmer filler, is used in the cheeks and persists longer than the others. Prices vary, depending on the volume needed and the practice location; it’s possible to spend several thousand dollars for face fillers.

The mission of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) includes medical education, public education
and patient advocacy. Plastic Surgery News Briefs are summaries of current stories found through various news and magazine
outlets that relate to or mention plastic surgery and cosmetic procedures. The views expressed in these news articles do not
necessarily reflect the opinions of ASAPS, but are merely published as an educational service to our members and the general
public. For additional information on these subjects and other plastic surgery related topics, please go to
www.surgery.org

September 17, 2013 - It seems to be almost cyclical - every few months, a brand new, game-changing anti-wrinkle cream is introduced to the market, only to face lawsuits due to suggestions that the "scientific" claims made on the side of the bottle are absolute bunk.

September 17, 2013 - It seems to be almost cyclical - every few months, a brand new, game-changing anti-wrinkle cream is introduced to the market, only to face lawsuits due to suggestions that the "scientific" claims made on the side of the bottle are absolute bunk.